Kitty Loves Candy Fabric Tour

Greetings friends, happy Wednesday! I am thrilled to be today's stop on the Kitty Loves Candy Fabric Tour - thank you so much for stopping by for a visit. I have some fun projects to share...all created with the new Kitty Loves Candy Fabric Collection designed by Lori Woods for Poppie Cotton. I enjoyed being creative and playing with these unique, cheerful Halloween prints. This brand new collection (shipping to shops this month) has charming fall pumpkins and florals, the sweetest witch and farm scene, along with that charming hat-wearing kitty cat…all done in a surprisingly modern and bright color palette. This is Poppie Cotton's first Halloween collection and I find it very endearing - the more I worked with it, the more I was inspired by it. This month, for my projects, I used my very own patterns - in fact, I created a brand new medium tote bag pattern using this fabric collection for the model. I also had a chance to play around in my studio without a pattern for my monthly pincushion...

Working through my projects, I started with my "Pretty Posies Pouch" pattern and created a super cute mini charm zippered pouch with a boxed bottom and a wrist strap. With all the wonderful little details in each print, it was fun to use mini charm squares to focus on the special motifs in each fabric...

Paper Pattern: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1232483326/pretty-posies-pouch-quilt-pattern-paper
Digital Pattern: https://www.etsy.com/listing/943706179/pretty-posies-pouch-quilt-pattern

Next is my "Mini-Medi Tote Bag". This is a brand new pattern I just listed in my Etsy Shop today! This medium-sized tote bag was also created with mini charm squares - hence the name. It features two pockets on the outside with round bottoms and two large pockets inside. It can be made with one charm pack and one yard of any fabric you choose, but I thought it was wonderful in these special Halloween fabrics. The directions and diagrams in this new pattern are quite thorough, so this is great project for all skill levels. I used Poppie Cotton Country Confetti Licorice Black for the bag/pocket linings and handles.

Paper Pattern: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1478728707/mini-medi-tote-bag-quilt-pattern-paper
Digital Pattern: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1478737849/mini-medi-tote-bag-quilt-pattern-digital

Finally, I created my "Forty-Five Tote Bag"...a big oversized tote, perfect for a retreat or outing. This large tote bag can also be created with one charm pack and one yard of any fabric of your choosing. It features two pockets on the outside, each large enough to hold today's largest cell phones...and two large pockets on the inside. 

Paper Pattern: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1246433121/forty-five-tote-bag-quilt-pattern-paper
Digital Pattern: https://www.etsy.com/listing/941372669/forty-five-tote-bag-quilt-pattern

As always, I *had to* create a special pincushion with this collection...I present to you, "Happy Cat Pincushion." This time my fat quarters didn't have any selvage ends to create with, so I decided to go all out on the machine appliqué. I didn't have a pattern; I just designed the applique in EQ8 and worked on it as I went along – this 6” square pincushion is an original design and is all machine appliqué. The whiskers and mouth were machine stitched – the flowers on the hat were fussy cut from Pretty Pumpkins Black and machine stitched in place with raw edge appliqué. The Rick Rack is ¾” from Riley Blake Designs in the color Hot Pink....and I used a star-shaped specialty pin in the top of the hat. I was tickled with how well this came out - it is just as I envisioned!

I hope you have enjoyed this stop on the fabric tour and are feeling inspired - thank you for visiting with me today. For more creative projects using the Kitty Loves Candy fabric collection, visit the Poppie Cotton Blog. If you love this fabric collection, be sure to check out your favorite quilt shop - Kitty Loves Candy is shipping soon.

I am already working on project ideas for the next Poppie Cotton Fabric Tour in June - it is using the fabric collection "Oh What Fun" (click on the link to see a preview - it is a Christmas collection!!). Plus, I will have a new ThermOWeb project tutorial posted later this month…so, be sure to stop back soon...

Hollyhock Lane Fabric Tour

Happy Monday - I am thrilled to be today's stop on the Hollyhock Lane Fabric Tour - thank you so much for stopping by for a visit. I have some very special projects to share...all created with the new Hollyhock Lane Fabric Collection designed by Sheri McCulley for Poppie Cotton. I enjoyed being creative and playing with these gorgeous prints. This brand new collection (shipping to shops now) has a delicate fabric panel (used in my mini quilt), delightful florals, and fabulous small geometric prints…all done in a  soft, cheerful color palette. As usual, for my projects, I didn't start with a pattern(s) - I just played in my studio. I knew when I saw these prints (months ago) that the fabric panel would be perfect for a mini quilt so that was my plan...and I just started cutting and sewing...

I decided to cut the panel blocks apart...then I cut twelve blocks the same size from Country Confetti Marshmallow White. I cut 12 hearts from different prints in the collection and machine appliquéd them to the Country Confetti blocks...then pieced them together to make my quilt top. Instead of fabric binding, I used ½” Hand Dyed Rick Rack from Lady Dot Creates around the perimeter...I also added small heart buttons as embellishments. This mini quilt measures approximately 23¾” H x 17½” W and has a hanging sleeve on the back. Isn't it a happy quilt?!

In usual Belinda fashion, after my mini quilt was complete, I just *had to* make a smaller project or two with some of my leftover fabric. We all know I love foundation piecing, so for my pincushion (I seem to make a pincushion with each Poppie Cotton collection), I did a small, 6" foundation pieced tulip block - and it turned out just as I envisioned. I trimmed my pincushion with ½” Hand Dyed Rick Rack from Lady Dot Creates. I also fussy cut one of the panel blocks (I loved the "kindess" text) and appliquéd it to a piece of wool felt from Benzie Design. I cut it into a flag shape and attached it, along with some flower shapes I cut from wool felt with a couple sewing pins. 

I also wanted to try to use some of the heart windows left from cutting the mini quilt heart appliqués (I try to use each and every piece of fabric), so I machine appliquéd one to a small, patchwork zippered pouch. I embellished the pouch with a couple wooden buttons (a handmade button and a bird button). This pouch is the perfect size for a small project or sewing/stitching tools and will be a lovely addition to a large project bag.

I hope you have enjoyed this stop on the fabric tour and are feeling inspired - thank you for visiting with me today. For more creative projects using the Hollyhock Lane fabric collection, visit the Poppie Cotton Blog. If you love this fabric collection, be sure to check out your favorite quilt shop - Hollyhock Lane is shipping now.

I am already working on project ideas for the next Poppie Cotton Fabric Tour in May - it is using the fabric collection Kitty Loves Candy (click on the link to see a preview - it is a Halloween collection!!). Plus, I will have a new ThermOWeb project tutorial posted in May…so, be sure to stop back soon...